Who am I?

Have you ever stopped to ask yourself the question, who am I?  I mean, like really stop and reflect on what makes you, you?  This week in my Introduction to Entrepreneurship class, I really had to self-reflect on who I am, what my goals are and how can I help and uplift those around me.  I have to admit, this was not an easy thing to do.  I have grown up being quite confident in knowing what my strengths and weaknesses are.  I have always felt as though I have had a good grasp on what I can and cannot accomplish.  I have prided myself in my ability to self-evaluate honestly and adjust my goals accordingly.

This week was different.

This week I had to face my fears. 

In my Introduction to Entrepreneurship class, I had to write my four biggest fears.  This was a hard assignment.  I'm not sure why this assignment was so hard for me, but I think that it could be that I actually do whatever I can to NOT confront my fears so that I do not succumb to them.  So, being required to actually sit down and list my fears was extremely hard for me to do.  After listing my fears, I had to write what I would do to avoid having these fears realized.  That part was easy.  I could easily list all of the things that I would do to avoid these fears from taking reality.  The last part of the assignment required me to write down what I would do if these fears actually came true to get my life back to the status quo.  I did it, and do you know what?  I felt like a superhero.  All of a sudden, these fears that I have always had at the back of my mind seemed like nothing.  I felt as though I was Wonder Woman and could fly through the air and defeat anything that came at me because even if the worst case scenario happened to me, I would be alright.  There would be no negative lasting consequence that would hinder my ability to have a happy and successful life should my fears materialize.  In one of the videos that I watched this week, Sharon Mayes stated that we do not need to be afraid of failure.  This is the power that the assignment gave me.  I am no longer afraid.  I am excited to begin the next chapter in creating my new business now because I almost feel as though I can accomplish anything.

If you know me, you know that I am a goal-oriented type of person.  I believe in constantly increasing our capacity to learn and our talents and abilities.  In reading the required chapters of "The Ministry of Business", I was challenged to write a personal constitution.  This personal constitution is a document that states who I want to be.  In doing this assignment, I came up with the following as my personal constitution:

I want to be a disciple of Christ and to become humble.  I understand that the greatest attribute of someone who is humble is to have an incredible amount of self-worth.  I want to gain that self-worth by becoming charitable to my fellowmen.  By becoming charitable to my fellowmen, I want to be able to see those around me as the Lord sees them.  I want to raise myself above the desires of the natural man and see my life through an eternal perspective.  In so doing, I want to become financially self-reliant in order to have the necessary tools to take care of my family in any and all circumstances, no matter what challenges and trials should arise. I want to raise my children to be successful, happy, well-rounded adults who positively contribute to society.

I am sure that different aspects of this personal constitution will change as I get older, however I encourage anyone who has never written out an actual statement of the person that they want to be, to do so.  In order to write a personal constitution, you have to reflect on who you truly are.  You need to admit your weaknesses as well as your strengths and write a personal constitution based on who you want to become.  The whole point of this is to create a model of the ideal person that you are striving to become.  I loved this concept.  I feel that now that I have this personal constitution, I will be able to have my own personal motto.  When I feel as though I am in a morally tough situation, I now have something upon which to lean.  As I strive to be a successful entrepreneur and a better mother to my children, I now have this foundation upon which to build the rest of my life.

In the exercise that followed writing this personal constitution, we then had to set long-term and short-term goals as well as daily tasks.  This part was easy for me because, as I mentioned before, I have always been a goal-oriented person and have already set many of these goals.

So, this is me.  It was painful disassembling my personality to get to this point, but I believe that I have a truer sense of myself.  I have faced my monsters that were hidden under the bed and I am excited to start building my pyramid of success.  I am excited to continue working on making myself better in order to be able to better help those around me.  I am glad that I now have my personal constitution as a banner that flies above me whenever someone asks me who I want to be.  I hope that one day you won't have to ask me who I want to be because I will have become this person.

Formula for Success

I come from a long line of entrepreneurs.  I have seen the work, tears, anxiousness and the passion that goes into creating a successful business.  I have watched a business grow from a simple idea that was concocted on a family vacation, to becoming one of the largest businesses of that type in Canada.  I love business.  I have always loved small business.  I think that without the entrepreneurial spirit, our economy would fail. 

I have always tried to teach my children how to think outside of the box when they want to earn something.  I have taught them that instead of asking me for things, they need to figure out how to get it themselves.  I have watched with tremendous pride as they have used their incredible minds to come up with solutions to their problems that not even I would have thought of.  I want my children to push themselves.  I want my children to constantly strive to become better than they already are, in all aspects of their lives.  I have constantly taught them how to work hard and have been trying to teach them principles for success along the way.

I grew up hearing the words of Robert T. Kiyosaki and his books Rich Dad Poor Dad.  My own dad was his biggest fan.  He would drive us places and make us listen to the audio books in the car.  I didn't realize how much of those words had sunk in until I participated in my Introduction to Entrepreneurship class this week.  The words of Robert Kiyosaki have reverberated in my ears as I have learned the principles of honesty and business ethics.  I didn't realize how much the lessons I learned from those audio books and the books that I am now reading would parallel each other.

One of the books that we are required to read, as part of this course, is called "The Ministry of Business" by Steven A. Hitz with James W. Ritchie.  First of all, I highly recommend this book.  It is very well written and I love the mentor relationship that has developed between these two men.

The reason I bring up this book, and the reason for my post, is because found within this book is "The Formula for Success."  This formula starts off based on some of the habits found in Stephen R. Covey's book, "The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People." 

The formula is as follows:

1 - Get Up Early

2 - Work Hard

3 - Get Your Education

4 - Find Your Oil

5 - Make Your Mark

6 - Get Prepared To Be Of Service

So what?  What does "find your oil" even mean?  Well, I have thought about this for this past week, and here's what it means to me.  Before the discovery of oil, life was pretty simple, and basically about survival.  After the discovery of oil came cars, plastics, Vaseline and a whole slew of incredible inventions which have caused our lives to change, drastically.  Oil was the catalyst for change.  So, finding our oil, to me, means to find what makes you unique, or finding your special talent.  What are you going to bring to the world that will cause it to become a better place?  Is it a special talent?  Are you fulfilling a need that is missing in society?  Do you have something that you want to invent that will make people's lives better?  Finding our oil means that we need to figure out what we can contribute to society in order to make it a better place.

Number 6 in the formula is my favorite component.  If you live your life preparing to be of service, you look at how you do things differently.  I used to be an Executive Assistant at dry cleaning company.  I loved my job there, but more importantly, I loved who I worked for.  One of my favorite things about my boss was the way that he regarded his business.  He consistently told me that one of the reasons that he loved his business is because he knew he was helping out his employees.  He knew he was providing a way for them to support themselves and give our immigrant workers a life in a better country with freedoms and rights.  My boss made business decisions based on what it would do to grow the company so that he could help his employees more.  He loved his employees and worried about them.  If they needed something in their lives, he would step up and help them out.  This is what number 6 in the formula means to me.  If we can look at business as a way to help others, we will be successful because it will mean more to us and we will fight harder for it.

Anyways, I have fallen in love with this formula.  I am currently working on a way to post this in my house so that my children can adopt it in their lives and their way that they set goals and pursue their dreams.  So, if I am not successful at anything else in my life, I hope that at least people will be able to see that I have raised successful, well-rounded, humble children who consistently seek to better themselves and who are active contributors to society.

Childhood Dreams

In my Introduction to Entrepreneurship class this week, we were asked to reflect on our dreams and to chart a course for our lives.  This has come at a very interesting time for me because I have been thinking about the circle of life due to the fact that our newly acquired rescue dog just had puppies on Monday.  

As I have aided Nina (our dog) in becoming a mother and watched her natural motherly instincts kick in, I have marveled at the fact that the role of mother was foreordained to us before we even came to earth.  This dog of mine has never taken a parenting class.  She did not attend a labor and delivery class to teach her about what was going to happen.  Biology has simply kicked in and her natural instincts to birth, clean, feed and care for her puppies have enabled her to have 6 healthy puppies.  Complications arose in the birthing process, and she was willing to give up her life in order to bring these puppies into their mortal existence.  Unfortunately, one of the puppies perished in the birth canal, but she persevered and was able to deliver another living puppy right afterwards.  

Watching my dog become a mother has helped me to understand the divinity of my calling as a mother.  I got married at a young age and had children at a young age.  Because of this, I had felt as though I had given up something in order to be a mother.  I felt as though I was giving up on my dream of contributing to society in order to have a family. I always taught music out of our home and I even had a successful little catering company until I realized that the hours that I was working would no longer work around my family life as I was at home when the kids were at school and at work when the kids were at home.  After realizing this, I took a job as an Executive Assistant (while beginning to actively pursue my goal of getting a Business Degree from BYU-Idaho) so that I could add to my family's income without taking away from the time that I had with my children.  Otto and I built our dream home and we settled into, what we thought would be, the beginning of the rest of our lives.  

Circumstances changed and we moved to Houston, TX from Calgary, AB on December 29, 2014 and this changed everything.  During our marriage, I had always worked in some capacity.  I have always put the children first, however I have always felt the need to contribute to society in some sort of meaningful way.  I found this sense of accomplishment when I decided to teach music and I watched children progress in their knowledge and love of music.  I felt I was helping when I would cater events such as weddings, baptisms, corporate dinners, open houses, etc.  I also felt I was helping when I was an Executive Assistant.  I saw how my actions and decisions affected the profitability of the company and I loved it.  

What I didn't understand, however, is that the largest way that I can contribute to society is by the rearing of my children.  If I can raise my children to be well-rounded, happy, successful, contributing members of society with a strong sense of self worth, then I will not only affect today's society, but future generations.  I am a direct descendant of great men and women who have proven that the actions of one person can affect generations of people for good.  I have always striven to be the kind of person that will make a great change that will have a lasting affect.  I did not realize, until moving to Houston and not being able to work, that my greatest joys and lasting legacy will be my children.  I cannot do anything as honorable as raising my children.

With that being said, I have always had a life plan.  This plan has always included some type of goal or dream that I wish to pursue.  As I have grown and learned new things and had different opportunities and experiences, I have accomplished many goals and created new ones.  In my assignment for this week I was to create a star and stepping stones chart.  I had to create a goal for my life and then take a look at the road my life has been on and set stepping stone goals to help achieve my goal.  This assignment has come at a time when two business opportunities have fallen into my lap, as well as my Nina having her puppies.  I have been consciously weighing the two business opportunities and both are incredible opportunities with huge potentials for growth.  I had not been able to decide which avenue to pursue, until the star and stepping stones assignment. 

My star (or ultimate goal) is to leave a tangible lasting legacy for my children.  I hope to accomplish this in two ways.  The first way is by being the best mother that I can be, and the second way is by having a career that will make a difference in the lives of those around me.  With this star goal in mind, and after taking a long, hard look at the road my life has been on, I have finally made a decision on which path I am going to take, career-wise.

One of the big inspirations for this decision has stemmed from Randy Pausch's last lecture called "Really Living your Childhood Dreams".  I believe that Randy Pausch is the perfect example of someone who has lived out his childhood dreams because he thought outside of the box.  If he had a dream and there became an obstacle, he would attack the problem from a different angle.  I have always believed in dreamers.  I think that the world needs them.  I also firmly believe that dreams need deadlines or they can just get away from you.  My mother taught me, "a goal is a dream with a deadline."  I have always remembered this (which is a miracle if you know me) and I firmly believe in goal setting.  I believe that if you aren't actively working towards something, you are simply wasting your time.  

So why this long-winded post, and what does it all have to do with each other?  My point is this:  when I was a child, I had two dreams; my first dream was to become a mother and my second dream was to leave a mark on the world.  I have been very fortunate to now be the mother of 5 amazing children and I believe that being reminded of what my dreams were, as a child at the same time as having to reflect on the path that my life has taken at the same time as watching my dog become a mother, has really clarified my star goal and the career decision that I need to make.  This career will not lead to as much money as my other option but I believe that it will accomplish both of my childhood dreams and give me the opportunity to help as many people as I can through the sharing of both my business and musical talents.

New Journey

To my eight followers,

Please do not have a heart attack when you see that I have posted something on this blog again.  I have a true and serious concern for your health and would hate to be the cause of any physical or psychological damage.  1 1/2 years ago, I began a journey to fulfill a lifelong goal of mine.  I decided that I needed to become an example to my children and pursue my post-secondary education. Through the glorious being called the internet, I am able to work towards my Bachelor of Science in Business Management degree with a focus on Entrepreneurship.
This semester I am taking an Introduction to Entrepreneurship class and am required to post my thoughts, insights (if I have any) and feelings on this blog.  I hope that some of you will endure this journey with me as I begin to explore the path that I am on and figure out the road that I want to take in the future.
As my course begins, I have been able to read some articles by some incredible businessmen and successful entrepreneurs.  There are two major points that I have taken away from these readings and videos.  They are as follows:

1 - Invest in yourself

When I was teaching music, I would silently giggle to myself whenever people would tell me that they wanted to learn how to play the piano so that they could play the piano when they were older.  There is no such thing as a finish line when it comes to learning how to play the piano.  Becoming a musician is a constantly changing thing.  There is no finite ending.  You do not get to wake up one day and suddenly say that you are a pianist. You have to constantly work, practice and learn about music in order to keep your ability of musicianship.
I have learned that this is the same as the concept of being an entrepreneur.  You may have the talent and the fortitude to start a business, but you need to constantly be improving upon yourself to become better.  You need to be constantly studying and learning so that you can increase your capacity to be effective in the market and in your life.  Investing in yourself and increasing your knowledge, talents and marketability are necessary in the workforce and crucial to leading a rich and fulfilling life.

2 - Make good friends

Wise is the person who fortifies his life with the right friendships. - Colin Powell

Throughout my life, I have lived with this saying in mind.  I have understood the importance of surrounding yourself with people who want to make you be better.  Whenever I have wanted to develop a skill or a talent, I have sought the company of those whom I consider masters of that talent.  In watching my videos and doing my readings for the lesson this week, I have learned that this concept of having good friends is crucial to my success as an entrepreneur.  I have understood the importance of networking but didn't understand the role that integral friendships within my inner network would serve should my integrity or ethics be called into question.  I have also learned that a personal relationship with a master of business is not necessary in order to establish a friendship.  I now understand that my love of the books "Rich Dad, Poor Dad" by  Robert Kiyosaki have established a friendship based on his philosophy even though we have never met.  The importance of having good friends goes along with the first point that I learned, invest in yourself, and I believe these two philosophies are the beginnings of a solid foundation on which to build a career as an entrepreneur.

As I begin this course, although it is not going to be what I had envisioned it to be, I am excited to learn more about myself.  I hope that this course will guide me along the path that I have chosen and help me to determine whether this path is the correct one for me and my family.  

Lesson Learned

Grandma, you left just in time.  It's COLD out there!
My car battery is giving me so many problems that it's just ridiculous!
It's SOOOOOOO cold!
My car won't start!!
SOOOOOO COLD!!!!!
Brenten comes to help me boost the car!
SOOOO COLD!!!!
The kids have stolen my mits and gloves (can't really blame them they had to spend the day at school).
SOOOOO COLD!!!!!
Frostbite.
LESSON LEARNED. . . . HIDE A SPARE PAIR OF GLOVES.

Amazing

That's all I can really say about it.
I am a spiritual person, but I rarely put that out in the open.  I belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and although I live my life in accordance to my beliefs, I rarely talk about my feelings and convictions with other people.  Sometimes I think it makes me forget how strongly I DO believe in what I am taught at church.
Yesterday it hit me.  As I watched that beautiful golden statue of the Angel Moroni playing his trumpet being hoisted onto the beautiful temple that is being constructed the overwhelming spiritual convictions that I felt amazed me.  I couldn't believe how powerful it was to me to be standing in the freezing cold with my three youngest babies watching a statue being put on the temple and how important and life changing that felt to me.
It was amazing.
It was an experience I will never forget.
Seeing that beautiful statue reiterated to me that I DO believe in the teachings of my church and I AM a spiritual person and I LOVE that temple that is going to be located 3 blocks from my new house.
Amazing.

Happy Birthday Big Guy

Yep, he's definitely older!  Can you believe it?  13 years ago I married this 21 year old stud muffin and now look and what happens. . . . we crank out a bunch of kids, he gets a REAL job, we build houses.
MAN life is crazy!
So, on this snowy winter morning, I can't help but be grateful that I have such a wonderful big guy!
Happy Birthday!!!
I LOVE YOU!